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Doctor Jimmy

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Posts posted by Doctor Jimmy

  1. As others have pointed out, I think they should have taken better care of their setlists from 75 onwards...NQ was awesome, but DAC felt tired and longwinded, nowhere near the 73 versions - I don't think there was any new ground to cover in the song improvisationally after July '73 and, since it's a live number dependent on freshness and vitality...they should have left it out. MD was always boring to me, so 75 is no exception. I get that Zep wanted a fair amount of songs that had the ability to change from show to show in order to keep things exciting, but Rover, Wanton Song, In The Light, Custard Pie...all these songs could easily be on the '75 setlist.

    As for '77, well, what can you say. MD and the guitar solo were a huge waste of time...For Your Life should have been there, as well as some calmer numbers to assist Ten Years Gone, like Down By The Seaside or Night Flight...did the audience really need to hear them masturbate on their respective instruments?

  2. Pretty hard to decide, but for sentimental reasons I'd go with the debut, since it's the first studio album I listened to after my father introduced me to Zep at the sweet age of 11. And, since that introduction was in the form of SIBLY and STH from the TSRTS movie, I would say the TSRTS soundtrack would be pretty high in my book as well (if we're including live releases).

  3. 4 hours ago, blindwillie127 said:

    Seriously though, people need to stop being so butt hurt over Keith Richards not liking Led Zeppelin. Townshend & Clapton both hated them, and I'm willing to bet Jeff Beck wasn't too fond of them either.....so fucking what?

    Amen to that! I'll take brutal honesty over these half-assed, ass-kissing "Oh I love [insert classic band name], they're the best!" remarks that celebrities often say

  4. 1 hour ago, John M said:

    Yes the Stones had some great lyrics, but you are underestimating Plant given the songs you chose for this comparison.  I think Plant wrote some great lyrics in a hard rock context.  

    Celebration Day 

    Misty Mountain Hop

    For Your Life

    The Rover

    Sick Again

    Royal Orleans - a great story song by the way

    Hots on for Nowhere

    Night Flight

     

      

    I'll admit these songs have all very interesting lyrics, but: a) they're the exception, not the rule, B) they still don't measure with the finest lyrics of the Stones, imho. But we're getting into dangerously subjective territory here, I'm afraid :P 

  5. 9 hours ago, Xolo1974 said:

    Whoa there....somebody disagrees with you in a respectful manner and this is how you respond? This discussion has passed the point of being a productive and positive use of my time. I guess that means that you “win”. 

    Please show me where I have been disrespectful in my response...and it is not a matter of winning and losing, I am just not fond of the constant underrating the Stones get when compared to other famous classic bands when they were equally fantastic (if not more in many areas)

    But i guess this is not the kind of thing to say on a zep forum, is it?

  6. 1 minute ago, Xolo1974 said:

    Dr Jimmy I also have to respectfully disagree mate. Peak years as a lyricist to my understanding includes Kashmir, In the Light, Stairway to Heaven, Going to California, Thankyou, Immigrant Song, That’s the Way, Over the Hills and Far Away, No Quarter, Rain Song, SRTS, Achilles Last Stand etc. All far more evocative tunes than anything the Stones ever did. 

    Don’t get me wrong, I love the Stones.....actually, let me qualify that. I listen to the Mick Taylor era Stones A LOT. Occasionally the stuff before that....BUT NEVER anything after. Don’t think they have done anything any good since ‘73. Just my opinion, and I very often have heated debates with my Dad about it. 

     

    First things first: i was talking about hard rock numbers, prompted by the "whoa mama" comments of gibsonfan. Percy has of course written his fair share of beautiful/smart/evocative etc. lyrics, but my point was: although on first glance the hard rock songs of the Stones and Zep may seem to be of equal lyrical quality, closer inspection reveals that the former had a way better knack for rocking out AND having words that most of the time (not always, of course) go far beyond the cock rock cliches Plant wrote.

    Second, I'm sorry, but Thank You has really banal lyrics for my taste, but to each his own, I guess.

    Finally, "all far more evocative tunes"? Really? Gimme Shelter, You Can't Always Get, Wild Horses, Dead Flowers, Moonlight Mile, Sister Morphine, Sympathy, No Expectations, Paint It Black, Shine A Light, Winter, 100 Years Ago, Waiting On A Friend are only some of the songs in their discography that display an astonishing marriage between music and lyrics. But I guess the thunderous terror of Shelter, the spiritual uplift of YCAGWYW, or the spooky, creepy "dark alleway" vibes of Sister Morphine are less evocative than what Zep had to offer...

    And don't make the mistake of dismissing their post-73 output...the "they sucked after that" myth is exactly that...a myth.

  7. 1 hour ago, gibsonfan159 said:

    Damn, you're right. I've never realized the lyrical complexity and deeply perplexing concept of honky tonk women before.

    Oh, it doesn't have to do with complexity and perplexing concepts at all...it's all about telling an entertaining story or talking about something interesting. Plant very rarely (if ever) did that on Zep rockers. Mind you, this isn't a criticism on the actual songs...they're rightful classics. But the Stones were always more intelligent lyrically, that's my point. On your previous post you seemed to put only the Who and Tull on the "intelligent lyricists" club and all I'm saying is that the Stones belong there, not on the "whoa mama" club...Honky Tonk doesn't have a particular message, but it's a wonderfully funny little story that's tons more interesting than Plant's generic cock rock ramblings...and I say that as a hardcore Zep fan 

  8. I don't get the Stones/Richards "bashing" at all (I mean, look at my avatar :P ). Richards has a not-so-flattering opinion about a band. What's the big deal? Others have covered the various possible reasons for his opinion (and the most likely -and simplest- of all is simply "personal taste"

    On 12/23/2017 at 4:24 AM, gibsonfan159 said:

    The Who and Tull I can understand. They wrote lyrically driven concept albums that made you think. I could understand why they'd think Zep were shallow. But the Stones wrote basically the same riff rock "Whoa mama" type music. Of course it's also easy to see that Zep were a "circus" act in the early days, with Bonzo being the power drummer of power drummers and Page using endless gimmicks and effects. Easy to understand how other musicians could just roll their eyes at them.

    No, the Stones didn't just write the same riff rock "whoa mama" type music. First of all, they were more diverse than Zep (and that's saying something given the fact that LZ were incredibly diverse too): the roots rock period is just four albums, before that we have pop/psychedelia (with all kinds of influences thrown in), after that funk/R&B/disco and some other genre hopping along the way. The Stones settled down for the "whoa mama" style (for the most part, but even then not completely) from Steel Wheels onwards. The majority of their discography is filled with brave experimentation.

    Another key difference is the lyrical output between the bands' hard rock material. Let's face it, Jagger in his peak creative years (1965-1972 at least) wrote much more creative and interesting lyrics than Plant. For a quick conclusion, just compare the hits: Black Dog, Rock And Roll, Communication Breakdown, Whole Lotta Love on one side, Jumpin' Jack Flash, Honky Tonk Women, Satisfaction, Sympathy on the other. The LZ picks are undeniable classics, but the actual words are rather...ordinary "squeeze my lemon" or "girl problem" tropes -only Rock And Roll tries to tell something with its nostalgic theme. The Stones cuts, on the other hand, in addition to being equally classic in the musical sense as the LZ choices are much more inspired. You have a metaphor for getting out of tough situations, a hilarious tale about a "baroom queen in Memphis", a cry against social issues of the 60's and a critique against mankind's evil ways from the POV of the Devil and a rather ambiguous.

     

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